Lisa Patton
This month, we are celebrating Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Through our October theme, #CheckYourself, we hope to amplify the voices of survivors, share resources in our community and highlight the importance of monitoring breast health. This week, we are featuring Lisa Patton, a multi-talented community servant-leader who uses her position at the nation’s leading cancer-fighting organization to help improve health equity and eliminate disparities in cancer healthcare.
Lisa is a life-long Hoosier who graduated from Ball State University with a degree in telecommunications and radio/TV sales. Her career has allowed her to expand across several industries, but she has found her niche in nonprofit work. Lisa now serves as the senior corporate relations manager for the American Cancer Society of Indiana (ACS), where she garners financial support for ACS programs and events through corporate community engagement.
Lisa was first drawn to work with the ACS due to how deeply cancer has impacted her personal life. “Cancer runs in my family,” she shared. “My sister is a 12-year breast cancer survivor, so it was important to me to work for an organization I knew supported her during her journey.” As the largest funder of cancer research grants in the U.S. outside of the federal government, the ACS has proven to be a perfect fit.
The impacts of research performed by the ACS are profound. After investing more than $5 billion over the past 75 years, completing this research has provided invaluable information on the causes of cancer and has helped people reduce their cancer risk. “By taking what we have learned through research and translating it into action, we’ve contributed to a 32% decrease in the overall U.S. cancer death rate since 1991. That means that we helped prevent nearly 3.5 million cancer deaths,” Lisa emphasized. The ACS has also allocated $49 million to fund 61 research grants dedicated to fighting health disparities, which will better illuminate existing cancer healthcare disparities, their causes and potential solutions.
Besides its lifesaving research, the ACS’s programs and partnerships are also close to Lisa’s heart. The Summer Health Experience (SHE) in Oncology is a free program for young women in STEM that inspires the next generation of cancer researchers. The ACS Hope Lodge program provides a community, activities and free housing to cancer patients and their caregivers during treatment. The ACS also partners with Pfizer Global Medical Grants to address the healthcare and mortality disparities between Black and white cancer patients. Additionally, with funding from the National Football League (NFL), the ACS supports federally qualified health centers and safety-net hospitals in 32 cities, which provide women of color access to breast cancer screenings and timely care, regardless of insurance status or ability to pay.
Lisa’s position, though rewarding, has its share of challenges. The ACS programs she loves require funding, and obtaining that funding can be difficult. Sometimes, the amount of patients and caregivers who need support is overwhelming. Lisa also shared that it can be challenging to communicate the importance of screenings and personal healthcare advocacy, especially within her community. “As a woman of color in this industry where people of color tend to be affected the most, I sometimes find it hard to communicate the urgency necessary to ensure that my community is educated and abreast of prevention and support resources,” she said.
Despite the obstacles she faces, Lisa stays motivated by the experiences that breast cancer survivors have shared with her. “Everyone’s story is different, and learning about them and the obstacles they overcame is so inspiring,” she said. “Unfortunately, you don’t meet many people who have not been affected by cancer. Knowing that the work I am doing is directly helping someone navigate their new normal is gratifying.”
Keep up with Lisa by following her on LinkedIn. To learn more about her work at American Cancer Society, visit their website or follow them on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn. Click here to donate!
